“My style of play and his style of play are totally different,” Cromartie said. “I feel I’m more of a playmaker than he is.”

Although it’s usually All-Pro Jets teammate Darrelle Revis who’s often talked about in the class of great cornerbacks with Asomugha, Cromartie believes he’s getting to that level himself.

“Here with the Jets, I feel like we have two No. 1 corners — 1A and 1B,” he said.

Asomugha has often been the type of player that opposing teams avoided throwing at, perhaps because of his own level of play but also the lack of quality pass defenders in the Oakland Raider secondary all those years.

With the Jets, teams are forced to choose between “1A and 1B” as Cromartie puts it, and that gives him the chance to make game-changing plays like he did last week.

Now, the Jets are headed to Oakland to face the very team that used to have Asomugha roaming their secondary—and pursued Cromartie in free agency this offseason.

“Oakland is an up-and-coming team and coach (Hue) Jackson is doing a great job,” Cromartie said. “They’re a team that, in the near future, is going to be a great team.”

However, the allure of a championship here in New York was enough for Cromartie to decide to return to the Jets on a long-term deal.

“For me, it was about being able to win now, having a chance to win the Super Bowl,” he said.

That’s every football players dream, naturally. For Cromartie, it means the opportunity to prove to the non-believers that he was the player the other 31 teams should’ve signed.

He knows that playing alongside Darrelle Revis, teams will come after him. But for Antonio Cromartie, all that means is more opportunities to make plays.